Tammy McCann Brings Jazz and R&B Holiday Concert to Nichols Concert Hall

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McCann, the Chicago Tribune's 2020 Person of the Year in Jazz, will perform with an all-star ensemble including trumpeter Derrick Gardner.

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As its holiday celebration in the 2026–27 Nichols Concert Hall Presents season, the Music Institute of Chicago welcomes back Artist in Residence and acclaimed jazz vocalist Tammy McCann for “ Tammy McCann Jazz Christmas.”

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The concert takes place Saturday, December 12 at 7:30 p.m. at Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Ave., Evanston.

Named the Chicago Tribune's 2020 Person of the Year in Jazz, Tammy McCann has a powerful, sultry, and emotionally charged voice that paints pictures and tells stories by merging classical vocal technique and gospel aesthetic with jazz to create a sound that is completely her own. She has performed with such luminaries as Chicago's own Ramsey Lewis and NEA Jazz Master Von Freeman, John Clayton, Branford Marsalis , Joe Locke , Charles McPherson, Dee Dee Bridgewater , and Carmen Bradford , and she toured as a “Raelette” with the great Ray Charles . McCann has thrilled audiences in festivals and clubs worldwide, from Thailand to Greece, as well as the nation's premier concert and jazz venues, including Carnegie Hall , Jazz at Lincoln Center, Birdland, The Blue Note, Dizzy's Club Coca Cola, and Chicago's Jazz Showcase.

This spirited performance welcomes the holiday season, as McCann assembles an all-star ensemble to combine jazz and rhythm and blues for holiday favorites plus a few surprises. Among musicians joining McCann is jazz trumpeter Derrick Gardner , director of Jazz Studies at Northwestern University 's Bienen School of Music and son of famed jazz musician Burgess Gardner.

Derrick Gardner , courtesy of the artist. “ Tammy McCann Jazz Christmas” takes place Saturday, December 12 at 7:30 p.m. at Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Ave., Evanston.

Tickets are $50 for VIP seating, $35 general admission, available at musicinst.org/mccann-christmas26 . All programming is subject to change.

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_Originally reported by [BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/chicago/article/Tammy-McCann-Jazz-Christmas-to-Open-at-Nichols-Concert-Hall-20261021)._